


Ghosts and Horror Movies

by makingitwork



Category: The Social Network (2010)
Genre: AU, Attempted Rape, Bullying, Drabble, Embarrassment, Fix-It, Flashbacks, Fluff, Ghosts, Happy Ending, Hurt and comfort, Jealous Mark, Love, M/M, Magic, Mutual Pining, Past Verbal Abuse, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-12
Updated: 2016-05-12
Packaged: 2018-06-08 01:29:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6833302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makingitwork/pseuds/makingitwork
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mark's given the qualities of a ghost to get closer to Eduardo</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ghosts and Horror Movies

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if this reads as a little rushed, I just wanted to give it a go
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy! 
> 
> x

Mark doesn’t really know how it’s happened. 

One minute he’d been perusing the different wines in Wallmart, and really, there are so many differences between what is essentially crushed grapes. He just wants the strongest, he wants to drink himself into a drunken stupor. 

But he can’t now. 

Because now he’s standing somewhere he doesn’t recognise and looking at someone he most decidedly does. 

He’s not stupid, that’s something the entire world seems to know. And though he is admittedly slow when it comes to relationships, he realised within minutes of Eduardo walking out- that it was a mistake. Sure, Eduardo wasn’t what the business needed, he wasn’t the best CFO, he wasn’t making the right decisions, and he wasn’t perfect for facebook. But he was perfect for Mark. He was a CFO that cared about Mark, that loved Facebook almost as much as he did. And if he was right for Mark, then he was right for Facebook. 

The settlement had been one road of Hell after another, and by the end of it Eduardo had faced his chair towards the window. Rather watching the sorrowful expression of rain from the sky than look at Mark’s face. 

It’s been months. 

And now he’s standing in a large apartment, with red sofas and red curtains, and gold and bronze embroidery over fabric so it looks like a movie set. And there’s Eduardo. 

He takes Mark’s breath away. 

He’s asleep, tucked into bed- it’s a large bed, with space for two- and he’s not snoring, which is strange, because the Eduardo Mark remembers from college always snored, and snuffled. Mark had just put his headphones on and lost himself to a world of computers, but now he wishes he had listened to the sound more carefully. 

He wonders how the hell he got here. 

He wonders if he’s having a hallucination. He reaches a hand out to touch the couch, and his hand goes right through it. He looks down at himself, he looks real, solid, he feels real enough to himself, but his hand is going right through the couch. 

He speaks a little louder than normal ‘Wardo?’ 

There’s nothing. 

Mark looks around; confused, but not really complaining. The cool darkness of the room is better than the white bright lights of the shop. The apartment is mostly open plan, but he finds the bathroom soon enough, and finds he has no reflection. He focuses his energy as hard as he can, strains himself, and finds that he can turn on the knob of the faucet. Water streams out, and he smiles, but then he loses focus, and his hand slides right through the sink and he nearly loses balance. He wonders briefly about why he isn’t sliding right down through the floor, through the core of the earth, ending up in China or something, only to come back the other way- but physics isn’t his area. He’s a computer man. 

There’s whimpering back in the bedroom. 

Mark rushes there, and sees Eduardo, his Eduardo, and god it’s been so long since he’s seen him so close up. He stalks his facebook account religiously, looks for photos in the press, online, but Eduardo’s online presence is minimal. His facebook profile is old and rarely used, the profile picture is of him back in college, and Mark whines every time he sees it. Dustin and Chris know not to talk about it when Mark burrows away into his office and doesn’t come out for a few hours, just scrolling, refreshing the page. Hoping. 

Mark gets as close as he thinks is normal. 

That’s mere milimietres from Eduardo’s face. Which is frowning, upset, lips downturned, and he’s making quiet, distressed noises in the back of his throat and Mark has a horrible memory of the first week of rooming with Eduardo. The nightmares. The nightmares of his dad looking him in his room, of yelling at him, of Eduardo’s stifled tears, and he thinks of how he acted. He remembers the first time, a few days after they’d met, where friendship hadn’t yet blossomed, and they were strangers.

_‘I need you to stop waking me up.’ Mark said matter-of-factly, swivelling away from his chair to face Eduardo, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, head between his knees, shaking._

_‘I’m sorry,’ Eduardo breathed desperately ‘I’m really sorry, Mark. I- I’ll get sleeping pills, t-today, I will-‘ his voice is stuttery, and Mark frowns_

_‘Are you going to tell me what wakes you up?’_

_‘It’s nightmares,’ he breathes ‘of my dad, that’s all, they’ll go away, they’ll go away-‘_

_‘Wardo, it’s alright. Calm down. Your dad’s a jerk. End of. Sleep easy, you’re in Harvard.’_

_Eduardo shoots him a shaky smile, his eyes shine with something bright ‘Yeah?’_

_‘Yeah. Whatever. I’m online.’_

_Eduardo’s smile sticks with him, and it takes a few seconds longer than usual to lose himself to the familiar, pixelated screen._

 

Mark gets a sick feeling at the fact that the nightmares are back. 

He’s about to start focusing his energy on becoming tangible enough to shake the brunette, when a jingling scatters through the apartment. 

Mark jerks up when a dog, a _goddamn dog,_ jumps _through_ him, and starts woofing into Eduardo’s neck. 

More memories, things are flooding back to him. He remembers Eduardo, of course he does. The tall, lean nature of his build, the warmth of his brown and amber eyes, the impossible anti-gravity of his hair. The crooked smile, the fondness, the inability to hold a grudge, and the tendency to blame himself for things that weren’t his fault. 

But now he remembers things that the old Mark barely heard. Eduardo’s musing on easy Thursday nights whilst they ate Chinese and played video-games. 

‘ _I think I want a golden-retriever. My parents never let me have pets.’_

_‘I had a goldfish once,’ Dustin calls ‘I tried the whole ‘keep it in a dark room and see if it goes white’ thing.’_

_Mark hums and takes a sip of beer ‘did it work?’_

_Dustin shrugs ‘kinda, I guess. It died and went white.’_

_They laugh and keep playing._

 

The dog is a golden retriever, with smooth looking fur and a wagging tail, desperate for Eduardo is wake up. Mark watches, and Eduardo seizes, sitting up suddenly, gasping for breath, flicking the bedside lamp on, and watching the room glow a soft gold. 

Mark thinks he looks beautiful like that. Half his face cast in shadows. But Mark thinks Eduardo is always beautiful. 

‘I’m okay, I’m okay, Lent,’ Eduardo whispers, running his fingers through the dog’s fur, but he’s shaking, body unable to stop it. He closes his eyes tight, and gives a distressed whimper ‘I’m a mess,’ he whispers to his dog, and Mark can’t look away as Eduardo begins to cry ‘and-and I can’t even say I wanna go home, b-because I don’t have one,’ he wraps his arms around the dog- Lent- and cries in earnest, body wracking with the force of his sobs, and Mark wants to hold him. Wants to kiss him. Wants to make a home with him. 

Lent licks at Eduardo’s neck worriedly, and it seems like hours later that Eduardo settles, falls asleep with his arms around the dog, and the light still on. 

Mark couldn’t feel worse. And what’s worse is the dog keeps looking at him like he can see him. With gentle, accusing eyes, as though to say _you did this. He needed you and you pushed him away. You needed him and you pushed him away. You hurt him. He is hurt._ If dogs could speak, Mark imagines their voices would be very wise. But also energetic. Like a ten year old with the brain of an old man. 

He brushes his fingers over Eduardo’s forehead, smoothed out in gentle slumber, and longs to feel it. 

 

 

He doesn’t really know what’s going on. 

So he musters all his energy and hacks Eduardo’s laptop, and emails Dustin and Chris that he’ll be AWOL for a while, and they should only email him if the site’s down. He doesn’t know how long he’ll be. But this is important. 

And then he goes to sleep. 

He wakes up when Eduardo does, and he doesn’t know if that’s a result of…his current ghost like state, or a coincidence.

But a beautiful, red sunrise floats in, and Mark wonders where they are. When he was in the shop, it was almost five pm, but when he came here it had been the middle of the night. And the sunlight is nearly red. Lent is still asleep on the bed, and Mark watches from the couch as Eduardo pads into the bathroom, and naturally, Mark follows him.

He stares unashamedly as Eduardo tugs off his nightclothes, eyes still squinted and avoiding the light as he starts the shower and waits for it to heat up. 

God, he is beautiful. 

Lithe muscle, and soft skin, and Mark just wants to touch and taste and-

Eduardo steps into the shower, and the only thing more beautiful than Eduardo, is a wet Eduardo with water droplets trailing down his body. 

He lets his hair plaster to his forehead, and looks so much younger for it, tilting his face up into the stream, leaning into the hot water. He lathers himself up with dark purple soap, creating lilac suds and a wonderful lavender smell, and then starts to shampoo his hair, and Mark steps into the shower with him to get a better look. 

This isn’t creepy of perverted, he tells himself. This is…just examining something. 

Wardo hums softly, and Mark remembers hearing those same Portugese tunes back at Harvard, the others would tease him for it when he came out of the shower, red cheeked and clean, and Eduardo would just swat them all and hum louder as he reached for a beer. 

And then there’s a little whimper- but this one is softer, more pleased than the one he made when he was having a nightmare. And Mark leans closer and hisses when he realises Wardo has one hand around his dick, stroking softly. 

He watches as Wardo rests his arm against the tiled wall, rests his forehead against it, the other hand moving fluidly up and down and his hips bucking into it. 

‘You don’t have time for this,’ he chides himself lightly, but then bites his bottom lip and groans. 

Jesus, Mark wants. He wants so much. 

He’d trade facebook for this, and that…that terrifies him. 

He doesn’t want to trade facebook, he loves facebook, nearly as much as he loves Wardo, and losing it would break him. 

Wardo hisses, and Mark stares because-

‘Mark,’ Wardo whispers with a gasp ‘Mark-Mark-‘ and then he’s coming, and the shower is washing it away.

Mark stares in awe and shock as Wardo gets out, and hurriedly gets ready. 

Because, what the fuck? Eduardo said his name. _His_ name. Mark’s name. When he came, biting his lip, like he couldn’t help himself, spilling over like just the thought of Mark was enough to tip him over the edge. It might be a different Mark, but he knows it’s not. He’s never wrong. And that’s…how long has…why? It fills him with endless excitement. Wardo wants him too. Hope blossoms like spring in his stomach.

When he finally exits the bathroom, Wardo is already dressed, in a smart suit, with his hair slicked back, and Mark wonders what he’s doing that he needs to be so dressed up. Then he realises he doesn’t have to wonder, because he’ll be going too. 

A woman comes in, wearing a hotel uniform, and promises to look after Lent, and Eduardo smiles charmingly, and takes his phone, and walks out. 

Mark still doesn’t piece it together when they walk into a large building that has Microsoft logos everywhere.

He still doesn’t quite get it when Wardo is called Mr Saverin, and asked to wait for Mr Beeze in his office.

But then when Mr Beeze walks in- and Wardo stands and shakes his hand, looking nervous but hopeful that Mark gets it. 

This is a job interview.

But what? Wardo got billions- he’ll never need to work again in his life- why is- Mark curses when he remembers Eduardo's desperate need to prove himself.

‘Oh my god,’ Mr Beeze laughs, sitting down ‘I thought it was a joke, you know, when I was told Eduardo Saverin was gonna come an interview for a job at Microsoft.’

Wardo shifts uncomfortably, and Mark watches curiously from his vantage point in the corner. ‘Well, yes, I was-‘

‘I mean, the story is absurd.’ Mr Beeze laughs again, loud and obnoxious ‘the CFO signed away his own shares, I just-‘ he breaks into a fit of chuckles.

Eduardo doesn’t get indignant like Mark expects, he just hunches in on himself, and looks down at his lap. ‘Mr Beeze, is there any chance of me getting this job?’

Mr Beeze stops laughing, and gives Eduardo a pitying look, and Mark wants to punch the fat, balding man in the face ‘I’m sorry, Mr Saverin, I just don’t think you’d be…suitable, here, I just- I hope you understand-‘

‘I understand.’ He says quietly, standing, he shakes Mr Beeze’s hand, instead of hurling punches like Mark wants him too, and walks out. Mark notices the people looking, a few of them giggling, a few of them pitying, and feels something horrible coil up in his stomach.

He never realised how Eduardo would be treated for everything that happened. He never…he never thought…

Eduardo hails a taxi, and Mark slips in comfortably next to him. And it’s unusual not talking for so long, but he doesn’t feel he misses it that much. This is more of a learning experience. 

They get out at another large building, and Eduardo looks decidedly more nervous about heading in to this one. He paces the lobby a few times, before going into the bathroom, looking at himself in the mirror, and Mark realises with a small puff of amusement he’s giving himself a pep talk.

‘You can do this.’ He nods to himself ‘yeah, yeah you can, because he didn’t really know your dad. He’s just- they had one deal together, he won’t- it’s fine. You can do this.’ He takes a breath, squares his shoulders, tries to sound more convincing ‘you can do this.’

And he marches out. 

Mark follows on his heels, and then Eduardo is being led into an office, and Mark settles into the empty seat beside him, both facing Mr Mirn. 

‘Eduardo Saverin,’ Mr Mirn breathes, he’s tall, and well built, maybe around fifty, he exudes power. ‘It’s been years, last time I saw you, you were a gangly teenager. Wearing those god awful glasses.’ He chuckles, and Eduardo squirms a little. Mark has never seen him look so uncomfortable 

‘Outgrew that phase,’ Eduardo says quietly, weakly, and Mr Mirn nods 

‘I should hope so.’ He glances at some papers ‘so you want a job here, hm? I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that what happened with facebook has put your name in a lot of black books-‘

‘Mr Mirn, I-‘

‘You looked like a fool.’ Mr Mirn declared ‘in fact, you still do. An idiot CFO who doesn’t read what he signs. There’s no wonder they tried to boot you out- adds on facebook? Really? Jesus, Eduardo, your dad was right about you.’ 

Mark stares in shock that people are speaking this way to his-his- and Wardo’s just sitting there, face marble white, still. 

‘I mean- quitting your internship, and then being publicly humiliated, having your name removed, then re-instated, the law suit, you came across like a stupid baby. Put a bad rep to business at Harvard.’

‘I-‘

‘Don’t speak unless asked a question.’ Mr Mirn grins wolfishly ‘I’m sure daddy taught you that one. Or is he still not speaking to you? I’m not surprised really, with what a failure you’ve become.’

Mark’s hands are fists by his sides.

‘If my son was anything like you, Eduardo, I probably would have shipped him off to boarding school as soon as I could, too. Oh god- you’re going to be sick aren’t you? You little shit, do it in the wastebasket.’

Eduardo falls to his knees, and hurls. 

Mark kneels beside him, rubs a hand over his back even though Eduardo can’t feel anything, and he watches with dismay as Eduardo blinks back tears.

‘Disgusting filth.’ Mr Mirn snarls, then softens ‘but I am a kind man, Eduardo. I believe in redemption and second chances. If you want, you can be my secretary.’

Mark glares ‘he’ll never be your secretary, you sick fuck.’ But no one hears his words.

Eduardo, to Mark’s horror, is considering. ‘I- I can do that.’ He whispers, and Mr Mirn stands up, and delivers one, quick, clean kick to Eduardo’s ribcage, his foot swinging through Mark, and Eduardo doesn’t even seem surprised as he falls to his side onto the floor beside the bin. 

‘Good. You’ll start in two weeks. Now get out, and take that wastebasket with you.’ And he leaves.

Eduardo lies for a moment, grunting in pain, arm curling around his stomach, as he hauls himself up, and Mark wants to cry. And Mark Zuckerberg never cries.

And then the two of them are leaving, Eduardo limping out, with a wastebasket clutched to his chest.

Mark is relieved that they head back to the apartment. Eduardo throws the bin away, and tips the dog sitter, and orders room service, and collapses onto the sofa. 

Lent greets him happily, and Eduardo manages a small smile. Mark sits warily on the armchair beside him. 

‘I got a job,’ he murmurs, scratching behind Lent’s ears ‘be happy. It’s a good thing.’

The dog, cocks her head, and doesn’t look like it’s very clever at all. She barks at the invisible Mark, who nods back at her. He likes the dog, he decides. 

Room service comes and Eduardo eats, feeds his dog, and watches tv till he falls asleep on the couch.

Mark focuses, and manages to drape a blanket over Wardo’s sleeping form. He thinks for a moment that Wardo might freak out at having a ghost doing things for him, before realising he’ll probably assume it was the dog. Wardo is sappy enough to expect impossible things from those who can’t deliver. 

Mark stiffens at the similarity that creates. Of the parallel that runs through him at the thought. 

Mark is about to drift off a few hours later, after he’s done some more snooping, when the door bursts open, and a man Mark doesn’t recognise calls for Eduardo.

Wardo mumbles in protest as all the lights are flicked on ‘It’s ten pm on a friday night and you’re asleep!’ The guy yelps in faux offence, and Wardo snuggles back into the couch and Lent. ‘Eddie! Get up! It’s party time!’

‘Long day. Sleeping. G’way.’

‘That is no way to speak to your dearest friend. Now come on, I’ve got one hundred and fifty people coming in twenty minutes.’

Wardo cracks an eye open and stares at him ‘you’re bluffing.’

‘Wish I was.’

That has Wardo up, stressing ‘jesus, Derek, you can’t pull stuff like this! Ugh! Oh my god, I gotta hide everything valuable and breakable-‘

Derek laughs like ‘Eddie’ is the best thing he’s seen all day, and Mark instantly hates him. Derek is tall, broad, with dark stubble and dark hair and looks possibly like he at one point had family in Egypt.

It happens spectacularly quickly, the party’s up and running and music is booming, it reminds Mark of Sean, and he doesn’t like it. Wardo looks uncomfortable, downing as many drinks and shots as he can to bear it.

Mark flutters around him considerately. 

The night goes on, the music louder, the dancing sexier, and Wardo goes out onto the balcony, stumbling, and Mark realises worriedly that Wardo is drunker than he’s ever seen him.

‘He-ey,’ comes a voice ‘look who’s come out of hiding.’ Mark turns to see an annoying sober blond douchebag walk up, and Eduardo doesn’t seem like he remembers him. ‘You drunk, baby?’

Eduardo sways, and catches the marble slap barrier, eyes glazed. Mark stands between them, like that will help. Wardo hiccups in response.

‘You look cold, baby,’ the blond hums, and tugs Wardo’s wrist, so he stumbles into him. Mark watches angrily, seething. The blond starts nosing Wardo’s hair, then kissing down his neck, and Wardo scrunches his face, brain sluggish 

’N-no.’ He says, and stumbles again

The blond chuckles, and slides his hands down to cup Wardo’s ass, and Wardo doesn’t know where he is, and Mark’s about to materialise and punch this dude in the face when-

‘He’s drunk, Jake.’ Derek’s voice calls out warningly, and Wardo tries to head towards the familiar voice, but Jake has a his arm firmly around his waist 

‘He knows what he wants.’

Derek rolls his eyes, and cups Wardo’s face and Wardo giggles drunkenly ‘Eddie, do you want to have sex with Jake?’

Wardo giggles helplessly ‘Wanna have sex with Mark. G-give Mark all the sex!’

Derek looks like this was the answer he was expecting and Mark can’t move because Eduardo’s friends are used to him drunkenly talking about Mark and wanting to- god- he-

 

 

Mark gasps, he’s in his office. His laptop balanced on his chest, and he jerks upright.

He checks the time. 

It wasn’t a dream.

 

 

Eduardo stares in shock when Mark knocks on his apartment door. 

Stares in even more shock when he and Lent get along perfectly. 

‘I’ve fired some people.’ Mark says, and Eduardo just looks at him ‘I want us to be 40-40 share holders.’

Eduardo shakes his head ‘Mark- no-‘

‘And I’m going to have a press conference. People are always dying to have those with me. I’m going to reinstate you as CFO and realise that me selling you out was the biggest mistake I ever made. You’re going to quit that terrible job and come back and we’re going to run facebook. Bring Lent, too. Not Derek, though.’

Eduardo is frozen. ‘How did you…how do you-‘

Mark lets out a sigh ‘I love you. And one day I’m going to propose to you. I’m going to make the nightmares stop, and I’m going to _destroy_ anyone who hurts you in anyway.’

Eduardo’s eyes water, and he stumbles to a chair, looking lost. ‘Why?’ He whispers 

‘Because I love you.’ He says again, with more emphasis this time, and Wardo gives him a wobbly grin

‘I love you too, I have for a- a long time, before-‘

‘I know.’ Mark collects him into his arms, and knows he’s going to keep him there forever.

 

 

The public are annoying and fickle and love Eduardo and hate Mark, but Mark’s never been bothered by that. 

The company seem delighted to have Eduardo back, apparently he’s more of a people person, who actually cares about petty semantics like retirement funds and health insurance. 

Dustin and Chis nearly start crying, and then they meet Derek and swear to start a Bro’s club. 

And then the two of them finish work, and fall into bed, and Mark tears Eduardo apart with clever fingers, and hot kisses, until they’re both crying out and afterwards Eduardo snuffles into Mark’s neck, and Lent goes to bed at their feet. 

‘You know you keep telling me about that weird ghost dream you had?’ He whispers into the moonlit room

‘Not a dream, but go on.’

‘And I said in it that I didn’t have a home?’

‘Yeah.’

‘I do now.’ Eduardo says, and rests his head on Mark’s chest, closing his eyes ‘with you.’

Mark’s breath hitches, and his heart swells with love. He wraps his arms around Eduardo and thinks that ghosts shouldn’t just be for horror stories.

**Author's Note:**

> Please prompt and comment, I know if I got some prompts I'd get super inspired to write more eduardo/mark :) xxxx


End file.
